Sunday, April 26, 2009

Oh, Bulletin....

Oh, Bulletin....

I have to tweak you again, just when you were being so nice to me.

There is a story in the 'Local' section of former associates suing Jay Audia's estate, alleging that he diverted funds from mutually owned development companies to "buy a race car, pay for his gambling habit, and have his home remodeled."

The third paragraph. "Jay Audia died in July 2008 at the age of 48. His obituary did not list cause of death."

Oh, for grief's sake.

We all know by now. Who are you protecting? You're publishing an article alleging that he gambled, diverted funds for his racing, and had his home remodeled on the company dime, but you can't say the word 'suicide?'

I mean, how can you publish the defense by his brother of "...so he took some advances, and he expected to pay them back"...."In this case, he borrowed some money, and he just died before he could pay it back."

..."he just died..."...

Pretty much loses the context, doesn't it. "...he just died..."

"My brother, any time he borrowed a penny from anyone, he always paid it back."

13 comments:

I believe it's the policy of The Bulletin, and most papers, not to report suicides unless the victim is a prominent person and/or the suicide is carried out in a very public manner, e.g. flinging yourself into the Crooked River Gorge. Whether Audia fits the definition of "prominent" is debatable.

In 1982 or so, Jay Audia bought a house from me on a real estate contract. A few years later he defaulted on the loan owing me several thousand. This was before he had made any money. I took the house back on a quick claim. Within a year Audia paid me back every cent of the back interest. I would say his brother has credibility when he says that Jay repays his loans.

"But the fact remains that he chose suicide rather than trying to work it out, pay back his creditors...."

Frankly, Dunc, I'm surprised and disappointed that, having a history of depression yourself (as do I) you would take such a callous view of it. This makes it sound like he "chose" to kill himself as a way of dodging his creditors -- rather like Jody Denton heading off to Australia. But it ain't the same, dude.

But who is more deserving of respect: A guy who kills himself out of shame and despair or one who simply skips out of the country, leaving a pile of bad debts behind? At least the first guy was capable of shame.

Excellent point Dunc. What I like is The Bulletin's Orwellian news doublespeak: we didn't report that he committed suicide when he committed suicide, so we can NEVER report that he committed suicide, even when a later story turns on that fact.

I am not a fan of The Bulletin, sorry everyone. But at the same time, I think it'll be gone within 5 years. Knowing that the paper's doomed makes its manipulative reporting more tolerable.

About Me

I'm Duncan McGeary, owner and/or operator for the last 33 years of Pegasus Books in Downtown Bend, Oregon. These days I'm writing books as well as selling them.
I'm the comic book guy. But even more so, I'm a book book guy. Books of all kinds. Big books and little books, children's and adult, fiction and non-fiction, hardback and paperback and trade paperback and graphic novels. Books with more words than pictures and books with more pictures than words. They are all part of the book world to me, and I love being surrounded by them every day.
I also have a second blog: Pegasus Books, where I list the product coming in over the next week.